Twinkling pearls of salmon roe gleam on top of succulent slices of taro, while a platter of oysters glistens under the gallery spotlights. A bright red crab sparkles next to slices of seared tuna that glow with almost radioactive intensity, alongside a shimmering slab of intricately marbled wagyu beef. Around the room spreads a gob-smacking buffet of the plumpest grapes, freshest sashimi and silkiest bowls of broth imaginable, as if plucked from a parallel universe where everything looks fresher, brighter and better-tasting than reality.
The parallel universe in question is the Japanese restaurant window – a place that has long gleamed with astonishing displays of impossibly realistic replica dishes, or shokuhin sanpuru, designed to lure customers inside. Honed over the last century, this dazzling art form has now been brought to Britain in the form of a mouthwatering exhibition at the Japan House cultural centre in London, part of a global network led by Japan’s ministry of foreign affairs.
Marvels of soft diplomacy in action, every show here seems calibrated to make you want to jump straight on a flight eastwards – or, in this case, run to the nearest Japanese restaurant.
